Koalas

1. Koalas

2. Size: Size is larger in the southern regions. Head-body length in the south average 30.7 in./78 cm for males and 28 in./72 cm for females. Weight: Average 26 lbs/11.8 kg for southern males and 17.4 lbs/7.9 kg for southern females. In the north, males average 14.3 lbs/6.5 kg; females 11.2 lbs/5.1 kg. At birth young weighs only 0.5 gm. (This is no typo; it is amazing how small they are at birth, about the size of a bee.) Fur: The fur of the koala in southern region is thick and woolly and is thicker and longer on the back than on the belly. Koalas in northern region have a short coat; this gives them a naked a ppearnace. The color and pattern of the coat varies considerably between individuals and with age.

3. Koalas don't live in families, but are solitary animals. • Koalas sleep as long as 18 hours a day and have a low-energy diet of eucalyptus leaves. • Koalas are not "drunk" or otherwise intoxicated by their leaves. • The name koala is thought to mean "no drink" in several native Aborginal tongues -- they do occasionally drink water at the edges of streams.

4. FOOD Koalas are strictly herbivorous in nature, feeding only on the leaves of 120 out of 600 species of eucalyptus (or gum) trees. They feed primarily on 12 species, including the manna gum and the red gum. They eat roughly 1-2 lbs of leaves each day, some of which enters cheek pouches to be eaten later. To cope with this diet, their digestive system is specialized to handle gum leaves. Eucalyptus trees produce toxins during some stage of their growth, and therefore koalas must have a good sense of smell to know which leaves are edible and which leaves are not. Koalas will eat soils to gain minerals, and drink very little water as the leaves they eat provide most of it for them.

5. ENEMIES Koalas have few natural enemies, being killed mainly by dingos, domestic dogs, and cars. When koalas get stressed, they become susceptible to disease, and large numbers have been wiped out by diseases such as chlamydia, conjunctivitis, cystitis, and leukemia. Their biggest threat is man, who at one time nearly hunted them to extinction for sport, and, after 1908, for their coat. By 1824, over 2 million koala pelts had ben exported. Today, measures are being made to protect koalas, but forest fires and land clearance still take their toll. There are 40000-80000 koalas left in the wild.

6. Koalas are said to be very lazy, but when it comes to getting food, they can climb 150 feet to the top of an Eucalyptus tree and leap from one to another. These "pouched animals" are very quick tempered and very muscular. The Aboriginal meaning of Koala is "no water." Koalas have the ability to drink, but they seldom do. They obtain their water through the eucalyptus leaves. Koalas are excellent swimmers. They are nocturnal, spending their days lounged in a tree and their nights consuming up to 2.5 pounds of eucalyptus leaves. The koalas communicate by a "bellow."

7. PROTECTION: Australian national laws protect koalas, but each individual state is responsible for the animal's conservation. The Service determines threatened status for the Australian koala under the Endangered Species Act (16 U.S.C. 1531 et seq.) as amended. The eucalyptus forest and woodland ecosystems on which this arboreal marsupial depends have been greatly reduced. Despite several conservation actions by the Government of Australia and State governments, the limited koala habitat continues to deteriorate.The species also is threatened by fragmentation of the habitat that remains, disease, loss of genetic variation, and death by dogs and motor vehicles due to development. Although differences occur in the health status of local populations, we are not able to designate either the current subspecies or the koalas of particular States as distinct vertebrate population segments.

8. The Name 'Koala' After the Koala was first brought to the notice of international naturalists just over 200 years ago, it was more by good luck than anything else that it was given its distinctly Australian name. Somehow the name koala seems to suit this endearing creature but it could easily have ended up as cullawine, coolewong, or even bangaroo. Or, it might have been given an English name. Over a relatively long period it was called a sloth, a monkey and a monkey-bear before Australians settled for koala. While many writers over the years have claimed the name koala was an Aboriginal word, it is most likely an anglicised version of one of many Aboriginal tribal names. The most common version of the story is that it derived from an Aboriginal word meaning 'no drink' because, generally, the koala does not need to drink, obtaining its moisture requirements from the hundreds of gum leaves it consumes every day. However, no annotation exists about the actual derivation

12. Koalas Presentation • Made by: • Gerda Viks • Liina Metsküla • Teacher: • Viive Saar • 2005